New Director Targets Programs for Custom Clients

The Office of Executive Education at Rice University’s Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business recently welcomed Dr. Michael Grojean as its new director of custom programs. In this role, Grojean will lead efforts related to new business development and the design and delivery of all custom Executive Education programs. In addition, Grojean will manage customer relationships with a wide range of senior management, corporate learning and human resource management personnel in major corporations to identify opportunities for custom programs as well as take a lead role in the development of a client service strategy for these programs.

“Dr. Mike Grojean is an expert in leadership, organizational transformation, and human resources strategy with a unique and extensive background in academia, consulting and government. We are incredibly pleased that Mike has joined the Jones School as Director of Custom Executive Programs. In his new role, Mike will lead our efforts to develop new corporate relationships, foster existing relationships, and enhance our ability to deliver outstanding programs that exceed client expectations,” said Dr. Brent Smith, associate dean for Executive Education at Rice.

After serving as director of an executive development consultancy firm, Grojean was a member of the faculty at Aston Business School in the United Kingdom where he served as Associate Professor of Management, Head of Executive Education and Associate Dean for Corporate Activities and Partnerships. His broad experience base includes having served as a Leadership Policy Officer for the United States Army as well as Director of Human Resources where he was responsible for developing, coordinating and implementing leadership development policy and doctrine for the 1.4 million person active and reserve force in the U.S. Army.

Grojean’s research interests and expertise lie in the intersection between organizational change, strategy and leadership. His research has been published in British Journal Management, Leadership Quarterly and the Journal of Business Ethics to name a few.

The Office of Executive Education, at Rice University’s Jesse H. Jones Graduate School of Business, is an integral outreach component of the school and offers more than 100 programs annually that focus on the working executive and includes open enrollment, certificate programs, application based management programs and custom-designed programs for organizations ranging in subjects from accounting and finance to marketing and general management.